Answers

Section B1: What is fake news?

Speaking & Writing
What is the media?:
[The media is defined as any communication channels through which news, entertainment, education, data, or promotional messages are reported.
The media includes every broadcasting medium such as newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, billboards, direct mail, telephone, fax, and internet.]

Answer to the questions:
[Students own answers but answer to question 4. could include Reuters/AP]

True or false?
  True False
A Reuters reports on over 3.5 million news stories a year. x  
B Some stories will not matter in the future. x  
C The top story from the past year was about the economy. x  
D The speaker says that stories about the economy will always be important news.   x (one of last year's story was about the economy)
E There are over 2 billion hungry people in the world.   x (1.2 billion)
F GMO crops are essential for some developed countries to survive. x  
G The USA is the world’s biggest car market.   x (China)
H A microbe can wake up after 120,000 years. x  

 

 Reading

  1. By Donald Trump when he was nominated as the president in 2016.
  2. Propaganda was generally put out, and paid for, by governments especially in times of war.
    As people became aware of mass communications, they realised that it was incorrect.
    Fake news on the hand generally takes place on social media and so is not controlled, or put out by governments.
  3. It means that it generates money through publicity. It happens on social media.
    Thus the three points: distribution and cost, audiences and trust and law and regulation were largely opened up on social media.
  4. Intentionally deceptive, jokes taken at face value, large –scale hoaxes, slanted reporting of real facts, stories where the truth is contentious.
  5. Hugely influential as many people (62%Anericans) consult social media for their news.
  6. It was small, but now the concept of fake news is huge and this questions the work of 1000s of serious journalists.
  7. By some people, when they disagree with something they claim that it is fake news.

Suggested answers:
The tube sign = large scale hoax
The idea that a paedophile ring was operating out of a pizza restaurant = intentionally deceptive.]

 

Writing Task
Example answer:

Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to complain about the incorrect news item after the Westminster bridge incident.
Your news channel reported that beautiful messages had been written on a billboard in London. Whilst I loved the message, and although it might be fake, it certainly mirrored my sentiments.

However, it actually turned out to be completely incorrect. I had already reposted it to all my social media channels. Thus it made me look rather foolish, and many others too as I have now read the item in fact went viral.
I find it very worrying that a quality news channel such as yours did not, on this occasion take the time to check the facts. In this instance, it didn’t really matter however, a more serious news item that is actually untrue may have more serious repercussions.

Nowadays we are all very aware of the concept of fake news, as I’m sure your journalists are.
I would suggest that you provide training for your journalists in spotting fake news items so that this situation will not be repeated.

Yours faithfully
JK